Good-bye goats

So much for these stupid baby goats.  We got talked into this deal by one of Chris's good friends: "Oh you can make a few hundred dollars...It's easy to do...All you have to do is bottle feed these goats for a few months"...blah blah-baddy blah blah blah.  

Baby goats suck!  That is said in the nicest way possible.  Cute? Absolutely!  A good learning experience? Uh huh!  Something that we're going to do again? H-E-double hockey sticks NO!!

I'm not going to go into details because I don't want people to get the idea that we don't take care of our livestock.  We do, 100% & that's why we had to get rid of them ASAP.  Whatever they had, we couldn't risk all of our sheep getting sick.  The sheep are our business, can't risk losing 20 babies & 15 ewes.

So that's that.  The goats spent 5 days at our place.  I wish we still had them, I miss taking care of them, but the extra couple hundred bucks just wasn't worth the risk.

Kinda bummed about the whole experience, but I'll find something else to do on the side. 

#3 & #65 CHECK!

I can cross #3 off my list.  Chris's mom bought us curtains for our bedroom & office for my birthday/Christmas present.  A couple weeks ago, my mom & I made a trip to Ikea in Sacramento because I couldn't find any curtains that I really liked here where we live.  Found ones that I love for both rooms.  Haven't got the ones up in the office yet, but our bedroom is finished! :)

#65 was to get up before 7 every day for 2 weeks.  Ugh...done.  And not only is this my routine for the weekdays when I have Caylob, but for the weekends too.  Now for anyone that knows me, knows that I am NOT a morning person.  Probably the farthest thing from it.  Once I'm actually up out of bed I'm fine, but it's getting out of bed that's the problem.  I'm the type of person that will push the snooze button for an hour if I can get away with it.

12 of these things are what's making me get up early in the mornings.  We are raising some baby goats for a few months then going to sell them.  However, they all take a bottle.  One at a time.  They get fed 3 times a day.  Don't get me wrong, I enjoy this.  I was the one that wanted to really do it.  I would just like it better if they could eat at 9:30 am on the weekends instead of 7 :)

#18 is to reach 50 blog followers.  So if you're reading and not a follower, click the link on the right side.  

Thanks!

That darn Agriculture.

This past week, Yahoo! wrote an article about the Top 5 most useless majors.  Just another reason to hate Yahoo.  Here is the list.

1. Agriculture

2. Fashion Design

3. Theater

4. Animal Science

5. Horticulture

Absolutely unreal.  Three out of five are agriculture fields.  I don't understand how Animal Science and Horticulture are categorized under agriculture.  I'm sure there are more useless degrees like Women's Studies or Basket Weaving or something.

I just don't understand how agriculture can be in the same category as theater and fashion design.  Pretty sure we don't need theater and fashion design to survive.  How can something be useless that this whole universe depends on?  Who needs to eat or drink??  Who needs to clothe themselves?? 

Yahoo really screwed this one up.  It is all over Facebook, and within hours of the article coming out, there was a fan page of "I Studied Agriculture & I have a Job".  As of tonight there are 4,255 likes, only a few days after the article was published.  

I graduated almost 2 years ago with a BS in Animal Science--Livestock Business Management.  I don't know a single friend of mine that graduated with an ag degree that doesn't have a job right now.  I had 2 different ag jobs during my 4 years of college.  I am currently unemployed by choice because I do things around our farm...things that I learned how to do in college.  Imagine that.  Being able to apply what you learned in school in real life situations.  How do you do that with a Theater major??  

I am just so perturbed by this.  Go and read the article.  Be pissed with me.  

Next time you eat a meal, put your jeans on or just take a breath, think about people that work all. the. time. to make sure you have: food to put in your mouth, clothes to put on your body, flowers to put in your yard, wood to build your home, the knowledge to make your dog feel better, and the list just goes on and on.

So, to the people that work at Yahoo, please do not partake in anything that has to do with agriculture and see how long you survive.  Good luck with that.  

And for anyone else that doesn't get just as pissed as me after reading this article...kiss my - - -.  

Heres to AGRICULTURE, the world couldn't survive without it.  

Baby Caylob

A few weeks ago, Chris's cousin and I started discussing the possibility of me watching their little boy 4 days a week.  It ended up working out for both of us, and our families, so today was the first day our our new adventure.

Caylob is his name and he turned 1 last November.

He's pretty darn cute, and I'm glad this worked out.

I won at nap time :)

What else do you do when it's milking time?  Haul out the car seat so he can hang out while I do the milking.  He was yelling at the baby lambs as they were running around in the other pen.

Now this video is quite hilarious.  A new sleeping place for a baby is tough.  For anyone really.  So I laid him in the pack 'n' play and sat on the edge of our spare bed in silence.  If I walked out of the room he would lose it.  He sat up and I just quietly sat there to see what he would do.  This is what started happening at about the 10 minute mark.  It was hard not to laugh.

He is so sweet! :)

Ok...fine the video won't upload. Maybe some other time.

Picture Post

Again, I am totally sucking at blogging lately. 10 days to be exact. Lame.

We have been pretty busy lately.  Just about finished with lambing with 4 ewes left to go.  We've got 15 babies on the ground, with only 1 bottle baby, so that's not too bad.

Not a whole lot of words for tonight's blog.  I'm tired and we have to stay up a little while longer to feed the baby for the last time tonight because tonight is it's first night not getting fed in the middle of the night.  I'm sure he'll be fine.  It sucks to have to wake up at 2:00am and get dressed and walk out to the barn when it's in the high 20's and bottle feed this lamb.  Thanks to the hubby, he lets me stay curled up under the down comforter :)

Here's some pictures of what's been going on around here lately.  I'm starting something new tomorrow.  More on that later tho.

DJ & Shyanne...he loves his little sis!

Watching the sheep sale at FSU.  Teach 'em young.

Redoing kitchen cabinets.  Bad idea to start this project in the middle of winter.  But I can't wait for the finished product.

Sleeping in the backseat of the truck on top of the shotgun.  It's meant to be 

Cuddling in the barn 

New camo bed for her to stay on while in the house 

Got a dairy goat.  Now I'm out there milking this thing twice a day.  

It's milk...not beer.  He doesn't walk straight as it is :)

Oh look, another dairy goat.  Now I have 2 to milk twice a day :)

More stuff coming tomorrow.  Promise.  I need to make time for this, I just haven't lately.

Most of these pics came off my instagram feed.  You can follow me at amycoolidge85

And if you don't have instagram on your phone.  Get it!!  It's amaaaazzzzing.

New Years Resolutions...Not for me.

So I've tried to do the whole "New Years Resolution" thing and it just doesn't work for me.  I give up about 5 days into the year, and it usually doesn't get accomplished.  Or I do, do it and never think twice about it.

I am VERY much a list person.  I love making lists and crossing things off.  I will even add stuff to a list after I've done it, just so I can cross it off!  Lame? Maybe. But I like to do it.

So this year, I've been seen a lot of stuff about this 101 things in 1001 days, and I decided to give it a try.  I've spent the past week or so working on my list.  I didn't think that it would be that difficult to come up with 101 things, but holy crap, it isn't an easy task.  So, here is my list.  If you can help in any way, shape or form, I would love the help!  I will blog about things that I will be crossing off the list.  There are some that will be done relatively quickly and some that are long term goals.

Here goes...

  1.     Organize everything in the pantry and label appropriate containers

  2.     Gain 5 new reoccurring customers through my Conklin business

  3.     Put up curtains in our bedroom

  4.     Put up curtains in the office

  5.     Refinish all the kitchen cabinets (a DIY project)

  6.     Go fishing with Chris

  7.     Replace all the windows in the house

  8.     Sweep or vacuum all the floors in the house every Monday for 1 month

  9.     Get the barn cleaned out and useable

  10. Plant pastures

  11. Build fences for the sheep pens

  12. Go on a 2 night vacation at the coast with Chris

  13. Go to Saddlebag

  14. Find matching couch covers for both couches

  15. Take a multivitamin everyday for one month

  16. Learn how to use iCloud and use it

  17. Get pregnant

  18. Reach 50 blog followers

  19. Start using coupons

  20. Complete all the laundry once a week for a month (wash, fold & put away!)

  21. Organize iPhoto on my computer

  22. Go to a national livestock show

  23. Consign our sheep at a sale

  24. Visit a state I’ve never been to

  25. Clean out all the crap being stored in the office

  26. Sell 100 rabbits (explanation coming on that soon)

  27. Do something nice for Chris everyday for 2 weeks

  28. Make it all the way through my 3 month work-out program

  29. Take Chris to The River

  30. Turn the spare bedroom into a nursery

  31. Have our giant wedding picture framed

  32. Go duck hunting again, and be successful

  33. Go dove hunting again, and be successful

  34. Have the wall fixed in the dining room

  35. Paint the kitchen

  36. Paint the dining room

  37. Replace light fixtures in kitchen

  38. Decorate the front bathroom

  39. Have a baby

  40. Send flowers to a friend

  41. Spend at least 4 consecutive hours outside in one day

  42. Buy an iPad

  43. Visit 5 local restaurants we’ve never been to

  44. Learn to cook 10 new meals

  45. Be able to do 50 pushups

  46. Buy a new TV

  47. Get a hot rock massage

  48. Sell my car

  49. Plant a winter garden

  50. Plant a lemon tree

  51. Go camping

  52. Buy more ewes from Fresno State

  53. Have date night once a week for a month

  54. Buy a new (to us) vehicle

  55. Get all birthday dates for family and close friends

  56. Send birthday cards to each of the family members & friends

  57. Blog Monday-Friday for 4 weeks

  58. Unsubscribe myself to all the emails I get from stores I never shop at

  59. Finish making the curtains for the dining room and kitchen

  60. Go to Yellowstone

  61. Teach Caylob 5 signs

  62. Make the office an organized place to work

  63. Convince Chris to get a massage from Tami

  64. Do a devotional 5 days a week for a month

  65. Get up before 7 for two weeks straight (not including weekends)

  66. Reach 100 blog posts

  67. Reach 100 blog followers

  68. Find either vertical blinds or curtains for the sliding glass door in the dining room

  69. Watch 3 “man” movies with Chris

  70. Put $10 away for each item on this list that is completed (use money to go on vacation   with Chris)

  71. Buy a stand up/chest freezer for all our butchered meat

  72. Buy the 2^nd Pioneer Woman Cookbook

  73. Buy the Pioneer Woman’s children’s book for the nephews

  74. Buy a sewing machine

  75. Get a flag and holder for the front of our house

  76. Have the outside of our house painted

  77. Cull 5 ewes that aren’t producing like they should

  78. Make a compost tumbler

  79. Get a manicure every other week for 2 months

  80. Remove the giant juniper pile from in front of the house

  81. Juice (and drink) daily for 2 weeks

  82. Blog an informative agricultural post once a week for 2 months

  83. Make jam from fruit that I grew

  84. Use the crock pot 2x/week for a month

  85. Get rid of car payment

  86. Get the internet to work correctly on my laptop

  87. Refinish small dresser

  88. Plant summer garden

  89. Buy Leah’s new children’s book (link coming soon)

  90. Put up bookshelves in the office

  91. Get Mallie’s hips and eyes checked

  92. Breed Mallie (if hips & eyes are ok)

  93. Throw a party

  94. Clean clothes out of my closet that I don’t wear anymore

  95. Memorize 1 verse a week for two months

  96. Add some colors to the walls in the office

  97. Learn 10 new meals

  98. Keep the house clutter free for 2 weeks

  99. Plant more flowers in the front

  100.  Sell 100 more rabbits

  101.  Complete at least 80% of this list

Well, there it is.  On October 4, 2014, I'm hoping to have at least 80% of this list completed, if not all of it.

Keep me on it.  Don't let me forget about it.  Lots of stuff to do, but I'm excited. 

I challenge you to make you own 101 in 1001.  It's a pretty big task, but it will be fun to track your accomplishments!